


Waiting For The Bus

by pikablob



Category: Epithet Erased (Cartoon)
Genre: AU - Giovanni has his own apartment, Adopted Sibling Relationship, Adoption, Child Neglect, Family Fluff, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, Inspired by Fanart, Martin Blyndeff's Bad Parenting, Running Away
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-10
Updated: 2020-05-10
Packaged: 2021-03-03 01:46:50
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,635
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24116743
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/pikablob/pseuds/pikablob
Summary: Giovanni runs into Molly while waiting for the bus, only to discover his favourite minion needs his help.Inspired bythis amazing artbyKit-kat-jo!!!
Relationships: Molly Blyndeff & Giovanni Potage
Comments: 33
Kudos: 206





	Waiting For The Bus

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Kitkatjo](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kitkatjo/gifts).



> Recommended Song: [Whisky Lulliabies](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9vQRDKIzSjE)

Giovanni Potage hated taking the bus. Supervillains didn’t take the bus; they had cool fancy cars, with leather seats and concealed weapons and secret compartments. But he wasn’t a supervillain yet, and there was no way he could afford any kind of car on his allowance, and he couldn’t use his mom’s car now he’d finally moved out, so taking the bus home it was.

It was a bitterly cold afternoon. Each breath he took turned to white mist, the frigid air stinging his throat. He had to bury his hands in his jacket pockets to keep them from shivering. Nobody else was desperate enough to be out in this weather, leaving him standing alone on the street by the bus stop.

The sound of something scraping caught his attention, pulling him from his thoughts. He turned, realising he might not be as alone as he thought. Walking down the pavement towards him was a familiar young girl, dragging a large brown suitcase behind her, plastic wheels clattering against the uneven ground. Her other hand tightly gripped one of the straps of her backpack, and her gaze was firmly on the floor.

“Bear Trap?” he asked gingerly.

“Giovanni?!” She jumped, eyes going wide as she realised it was him. “I mean, uh, hi boss?” Her voice cracked; she winced.

“What are you doing out here, kid?” He raised an eyebrow, looking her up and down. Now he was paying attention he could see her hair was even messier than usual, and heavy bags hung beneath her eyes.

“N-nothing,” she said quickly, nearly jumping out of her skin. “I was just… waiting for the bus, actually.” She pulled her suitcase close and stood it up, before letting go of the handle.

“You too, Bear Trap?” He shrugged, trying not to sound worried. Even he could tell something was up. She squirmed uncomfortably at the question, before nodding.

“Where are you going?” she asked quickly.

“Home,” he explained. “I have an apartment on the far side of town. It’s where I plan all my bad deeds!”

“Cool,” she said quietly. “So, do you live with your family, or…?”

“It’s just me,” he admitted, leaning down close. “I have a sweet lair all to myself! It’s so much better than living with my mom, ugh.”

“Oh,” she looked down again, glancing back at her suitcase. She opened her mouth as if to say something, only to clamp it shut again and shake her head. Giovanni frowned; something was definitely very wrong, and he could feel his concern growing.

“Alright, Bear Trap, what’s going on?” He crouched down, bringing himself as close to her level as he could get. She flinched.

“N-nothing!”

“C’mon Bear Trap, you’re my minion, remember?” He did his best to sound reassuring. “Whatever it is, you can tell old Giovanni Potage. I’m not gonna judge.”

She swallowed sharply. Her grip on her backpack straps tightened, her knuckles turning pale, and her breathing quickened. For a moment she was silent, before she suddenly shut her eyes and threw her arms wide. Immediately all the background noise of the road was silenced; she had used her epithet, he realised.

“I ran away!” Molly blurted out. He jumped at the outburst. “Sorry.”

“Don’t worry,” he reassured, opening his arms in an offer of comfort. She didn’t hesitate, leaping into his embrace. He easily lifted her up, cradling her against his chest. Quietly she hiccuped, tears beginning to flow. “Now, why don’t you tell me what happened?”

“The toy store hasn’t been doing well,” she sniffed, reaching out to grab the front of his jacket with one hand. “There just aren’t that many customers I guess, I don’t know, but we aren’t making money anymore. My dad and my sister keep getting mad and saying it’s my fault, like I’m not doing enough, but I’m the one who does everything!” She was openly crying now, burying her face in the front of Giovanni’s jacket. “Lorelai’s always shouting at me, and dad keeps demanding I do more work. I just couldn’t take any more of it, so I ran away.”

“And now you don’t have anywhere to go, huh?” he asked softly. She murmured affirmatively. He felt his heart ache for her, and gently he tightened his embrace.

“Does that make me a bad person?” she asked, voice cracking, barely above a whisper.

“Of course not!” he declared. “Sure you’re a bad guy, Bear Trap, you’re my minion, but that’s not the same as being a bad person!”

“It isn’t?”

“Bad guys like us go around sticking it to the man,” he explained, still gently holding her close, “Showing authority who’s boss! Real bad people hurt those who can’t fight back, like forcing their own kid to do all their work then blaming her when it goes wrong.” That got a sniffle out of Molly. “I mean it, kid, the only real bad people here are your dumb family.”

“Thanks, boss,” she whispered.

“I’m just telling the truth,” he replied. “As for your whole ‘not having anywhere to go’ problem, I might just be able to help with that too.”

“Huh?” she asked dubiously.

“You’re my minion,” he repeated, “Which means you have the option of coming to live with me, the great Giovanni Potage!”

“You mean it?” she breathed, seemingly unable to believe it.

“Of course I mean it!” He forced a smile, squeezing her again. For a moment he struggled to think of the right words, before speaking again, quietly. “Bear Trap, you’re already kinda like my little sister; there’s no way I’m leaving you here on the streets.”

Molly suddenly went deathly silent; he felt her grip loosen in surprise. For a moment he was worried he’d crossed some invisible line, some boundary of hers he hadn’t noticed was there. He could feel sudden panic rising in his gut. Did she not see him the same way? Would she not want to live with him now?

But all his worries melted away the moment he felt her tiny arms wrap around him, suddenly hanging on for dear life. She started to cry again, and he felt the faintest sting of tears in his own eyes.

“Thank you,” she sobbed. Gently he reached around to ruffle her hair with one hand, firmly supporting her with the other. They stayed like that for a moment, her quietly sobbing from sadness and relief all at once, until finally she grew quiet. With a quiet pop, the bubble of silence she had summoned faded away.

Looking out down the street, Giovanni finally saw the glinting silver front and orange lights of an oncoming bus. “Ready to go down now, Bear Trap?”

“Actually, can I stay like this?” she asked quietly, more than a hint of guilt in her voice. “This is nice. I haven’t been really held like this since mom died.”

“Say no more.” He grinned, ignoring the minor ache in his arm. It was worth it, for her. Instead he reached down and grasped the handle of her suitcase, taking a step towards the curb.

The bus rolled to a stop in front of them, and with a hiss the doors swung open. He stepped her up through the door and to the driver’s window, ignoring the slightly dubious look the man gave him at the sight of Molly in his arms.

“Two tickets for Southside!” he demanded with a smile. The driver just rolled his eyes.

“Sure; that’ll be eight-fifty.” He extended a hand through his window. Giovanni let go of the suitcase, reaching under Molly and into his jacket pocket. After a moment of rummaging he produced enough loose change to cover the fare, and quietly deposited it in the driver’s hand.

Taking the suitcase again, he set off into the bus. It was nearly empty, so he chose the rear row and sat down, shifting Molly onto his lap so he wasn’t supporting all her weight through just one arm. She curled up against him, letting out a quiet yawn, and with a jerk the bus departed.

“I can pay you back,” she said quietly, flushing with embarrasment. “I stole the tip jar and all the stuff in the register from today’s shift. It’s in my case.” He looked down at the suitcase, noticing for the first time that a cartoon bear face had been sewn into the battered brown cover. The whole thing looked homemade; had Molly done that herself, or was it another gift from her mother?

“You see, Bear Trap; that’s the kind of thing real bad guys do!” he said as loud as he dared, “Stealing from someone who deserved it! You earned that cash, so you should keep it.”

“Thanks,” she yawned, blinking lazily. Once again he noticed the bags hanging under her eyes; no doubt between her emotional ordeal and the physical stress of running away she was even more exhausted than usual.

“You know, it’s like half an hour to Southside,” he said gently. “If you want to get some sleep now, I’ll wake you up when we get there.”

“Okay,” she said softly. Quietly her eyes closed, and she curled further into his chest. He felt a swelling of warmth as she drifted off in his arms, before he turned to watch out of the window.

There were all kinds of worries still ahead; he could barely afford the rent as it was, let alone another mouth to feed. And he knew she needed serious therapy, the kind he definitely would never be able to afford. And on top of all of that he was almost certain this was technically kidnapping. But none of that mattered: he was Giovanni Potage, Sweet Jazz City’s greatest villain, and he was sure that somehow he’d make it all work, for her.

**Author's Note:**

> Seriously go check out kit-kat-jo they're amazing!!!


End file.
